Measuring In Love: The Lives of Friends
by HeavyDrugsOrGroupHugs
Summary: A collection of one-shots of the lives of a colourful group of people. From childhood to Rent, the events in their lives have forced them to grow - and taught them to charish. Formerly 'Mimi, Growing'
1. Mimi, Growing

**This was originally suposed to be a one-shot of Mimi's life...but that has since morphed into the lives of each of the principal Rent characters. I hope you enjoy.**

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Mimi Marquez, age four, her small hands gripping a piece of green chalk as she finished the face of her Prince Charming. Holding the chalk-prince's hand is a smiling princess with braids that match Mimi's. Carefully, she filled in the prince's eyes, imagining a pair of sparkling emeralds.  
"Mimi! La cena está lista!"  
"Coming, Mama!" Mimi calls. She glances again at her drawing before skipping into the house, imagining her Happily Ever After.

Mimi, age seven, dresses Barbies with her older sister. Mimi picks out the smallest skirt and a top that shows off the doll's belly button. Anita wrinkles her nose and says the clothing is trashy. Mimi doesn't think so. To her, the doll looks beautiful.

Mimi, age ten, learns about sex for the first time in health class. The other girls wrinkle their noses at the idea, but Mimi can't wait to try it.

Mimi, age fourteen, is holding a bottle of something strong and a cigarette, though she doesn't remember accepting either. Later, the bottle is mostly empty and a boy is offering her something other than nicotine. She figures what's one night and accepts the joint with a smile.

Mimi, age fifteen, losing her virginity in the backseat of her boyfriend's car. They've only been together a few days, but she thinks she might be in love. He handles her roughly and calls her a whore. She likes the word in his mouth and tells him so with her body.  
The next day, he tells her there was never anything between them and laughs at her assumptions.

Mimi, age sixteen, in trouble at school for dancing on a teacher's desk. He asks her if she knows what message she's sending. She asks him if he would like a personal demonstration.

Mimi, age seventeen, skips graduation and skips town, heading for the big city.

Mimi, age eighteen, dressed like her Barbie doll, dancing for a crowd in a way that would make her teacher drool. After the show, the manager tells her that some men would like a private performance. Mimi in nervous, but one of the other girls slips her a needle and a way to make everything easier.

Mimi, age twenty, lying on a table on Christmas Eve. She looks up into the emerald eyes of her Prince Charming and decides that now is the time to start fighting for her Happily Ever After.


	2. Collins, Growing

Tom Collins, age four, holds a wooden pencil between his fingers and wonders if he could maybe make one himself if he had a small tree.

Tom, age six, solves a Rubix Cube in less than a minute. His father, who hasn't been watching, accuses him of cheating. He teaches his son not to lie by twisting his arm behind his back. Tom takes the punishment stony-faced and refuses to cry.

Tom, age nine, rides his bike with his best friend Alvin. They go farther than usual, ending up in a sketchy part of town. They pass a young woman, or rather, a man dressed as a woman. "Don't look at it," hisses Alvin. "You can't talk to people like that." Tom keeps his mouth shut, but he finds the drag queen captivating.

Tom, age twelve, builds a robot and wins first prize at the science fair.

Collins, age fourteen, goes out for football. He does it for himself and not for his father. People call him by his last name and slap him on the back.

Collins, age sixteen, loses his virginity to a man. He comes out to his father a few days later. Dishes are thrown, along with ugly words. Collins leaves his house for the last time with a face marred by cuts and shame.

Collins, age seventeen, sets up house with his boyfriend in an old warehouse. Within a year, Alex dies, and after a visit to the doctor, Collins learns that he will too.

Collins, age twenty-one and desperate for money, mugs a street musician for the change in his guitar case. Stronger than he looks, the guitar player fights back and overpowers Collins. Impressed, Collins apologizes and strikes up conversation. He doesn't make any money that day, but he does make a new friend – a heroin addict names Roger Davies.

Collins, age twenty-three, runs naked through the Parthenon. His friends nod along thoughtfully during he recount of the story, as if this were expected, and don't ask questions.

Collins, age twenty- five, plays up his injuries after a Christmas Eve encounter with a couple of thugs to attract the attention of the cute guy playing the pickle tub.

Collins, age twenty-six, loses his faith in Earth, but not his faith in Heaven.


	3. Mark, Growing

Mark Cohen, age three, is unable to see more than a foot in front of his face. His first pair of glasses has a strap around the back of his head to keep them on.

Mark, age six, comes home in tears. Another kid had pushed him down and called him a crybaby. His mother tries to fix it with a cup of chocolate milk and a bubble bath before telephoning the school.

Mark, age ten, breaks his glasses playing soccer in gym class. No one can figure out how it happened because Mark usually avoids the ball like the plague.

Mark, age thirteen, falls head over heel for a girl three years his senior. When she finds out, she calls him cute and tells all her friends. They wave to him in the hallways and treat him like a child. Embarrassed, Mark begins to hide within himself.

Mark, age fifteen, finally saves up enough for a video camera. He spends his lunch hours filming the high school jungle around him. In this fashion, he draws the curiosity of one individual, his first girlfriend Nanette. Somehow, she convinces him to take dance classes with her. She breaks up with him for constantly stepping on her feet.

Mark, age sixteen, starts a film club at school, mostly in hopes of finding a friend. He alone shows up at the meeting.

Mark, age seventeen, graduates high school near the top of his class. He's close, but not quite the best. So begins a trend.

Mark, age twenty-one, graduates from film school. He's ready to dive into a job he loves, but knows that the success rate of his profession is low. He realizes that he'll probably end up freezing and living in squalor with a drug addict or something.

Mark, age twenty-three, finds one of his roommates dead in the bathroom. The blood from April's wrists runs into her newly bleached hair, turning it back to red.

Mark, age twenty-four, sells his soul to sleaze, but regains it just in time for Christmas.


	4. Angel, Growing

Angel Schunard, age three, suggests a game to his sister. Later, when they are found in the bathroom, covered in their mother's makeup, Rosa takes credit for the idea. Mama laughs and gently wipes the lipstick from her son's mouth.

Angel, age five, introduces himself to his kindergarten class by blowing a kiss. He plays dress up and house with the girls and doesn't mind that the boys tease him.

Angel, age eight, breaks his mother's crystal glasses by drumming on them. Before the sound of shattering and Mama's sobs, Angel had kept up a good beat, though no one seems to notice.

Angel, age eleven, is still playing dress up, but it hiding it well. Residue of red nail polish stains Angel's cuticles, but if asked, it's blood.

Angel, age thirteen, stares after a boy in his eight grade class with a certain kind of interest. His teacher notices and Angel's average drops that year.

Angel, age fifteen, admits to his parents that he is gay. His mother smiles and lets him know that she's glad he had the courage to tell them and that they're going to be supportive. His father doesn't say anything, but he hugs his son tightly before the conversation disperses.

Angel, age sixteen, dresses in drag at school for the first time. She comes home with food splattered across her dress and a heel on her shoes snapped in two. She calmly washed out the tomato stains, still proud at what she has accomplished.

Angel, age eighteen, attends prom alone. Her dress outshines those of all the other girls because Angel made it herself.

Angel, age nineteen, officially changes her name and officially tests positive for AIDS.

Angel, age twenty, ignores the skinhead who has been following her for blocks. He sneers at her. "What the hell are you?" he asks crudely. "You're a fuckin' freak." Angel turns to him. "I'm more of a man than you'll ever be and more of a woman than you'll ever get." The skinhead spits at her feet and walks away, earning Angel a round of applause from the girl watching from a nearby doorway.

Angel, age twenty-one, kills a dog and secretly feels bad about it.

Angel, far too young, leaves this world for the home of her namesake. Cradled in the arms of her love, Angel's heart finally expires.


	5. Joanne, Growing

**I'm so sorry for the lack of updates. I've been away for two weeks, sans computer. The good news is that I'm oldfashioned. I have a notebook full of Rent fanfic, including the rest of this piece. They just need to be typed up. Benny is next, followed by Maureen and Roger. Enjoy!**

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Joanne Jefferson, age three, feels that she isn't getting enough attention. At dinnertime, she crawls around under the table, meowing like a cat and insisting on eating from a bowl on the floor. Her father laughs and calls her 'Kitten'.

Joanne, age six, watches in awe as a boy in her class takes off his pants and, despite the teacher's plea, refuses to put them on again. Joanne decides then that girls' bodies are much prettier than boys' bodies.

Joanne, age eight, sits in a circle with her 3rd grade class. She listens as each student shares what they want to be when they grow up. The girls closest to Joanne all want to be pop stars. When Joanne's turn comes around, she answers confidently. "A public defender. So I can help people reach the justice they deserve." The pop star girls titter.

Joanne, age ten, takes up dance classes. She imagines herself spinning across a stage, the best dancer in the class. She is instantly turned off by ballet and all the prissy girls who take it, but she is drawn to ballroom, especially the fast-paced tango. After a few classes, Joanne stops dancing. As captivating as it is, the tango is just too fast for her.

Joanne, age thirteen, listens to some of her friends talk about their latest crushes. "Jo, who do you like?" asks Ellen. The girls all look towards Joanne, who had been trying to avoid the question. "Um…Adrienne," she tells them, and they all coo, thinking she means Adrian Woods, the quiet boy with the sleepy eyes. Joanne decides not to correct them.

Joanne, age fourteen, spends a second too long watching as one of her cabin mates gets changed at summer camp. "What?" the girl hisses as she glares at Joanne. Joanne spends the rest of the week and a half followed by the whispers of 'dyke' and 'faggot'.

Joanne, age fifteen, throws herself into her schoolwork, especially her Law Studies class, and ignores the graffiti on the walls of the girls' bathroom.

Joanne, age sixteen, publicly comes out with the help of her first girlfriend, Adrienne Murphy, who Joanne had been crushing on since the eighth grade. Though the relationship doesn't last, it sure as hell feels good.

Joanne, age eighteen, falls madly in love with a French girl and tries out the tango again.

Joanne, age twenty-one, goes to Harvard. The people there are polished, dignified and as straight as a goddamn arrow.

Joanne, age twenty-five, defends a young woman in trouble with the law after her protest turned violent. Joanne gets her acquitted easily and as a thank-you, the woman lets Joanne take her home along with a bottle of champagne. The woman tells Joanne that females trigger much better orgasms than men do, and Joanne can't help but agree.

Joanne, age twenty-six, decides that she's finally ready to keep up with the tango.

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**Reviews?**


	6. Benny, Growing

Benjamin Coffin III, age two, says the word 'money' for the first time.

Benny, age four, starts kindergarten wearing a dress shirt. His mother calls him charming and he feels proud, even though the shirt itches.

Benny, age seven, sees a picture of New York City and begins a new dream that, someday, he's going to own it.

Benny, age ten, falls out of a tree and breaks his arm. The nurses at the hospital treat him like an adult. He decides that he should act as such from now on.

Benny, age thirteen, is very interested in the arts. He tries out for the school play and the band, but he doesn't make either of them. Instead, he techs for the play and falls in love with cyber-arts.

Benny, age fifteen, takes two business courses his grade 10 year. His teachers say that they've never seen such determination in such a young student before. They tell him that he's going to go far.

Benny, age sixteen, gets turned down by three different girls in the same month. He reacts by trying to put his fist through a wall like he's seen in the movies. The wall suffers nothing, but Benny breaks a finger.

Benny, age seventeen, runs for class president and loses.

Benny, age twenty, works his way through college. He graduates with a shiny young face and his degree, ready to do something important.

Benny, age twenty-two, tries hard to make friends with his new roommates. They're a little odd, not quite like him. Eventually, Benny gets them to trust him.

Benny, age twenty-three, falls in love with someone too good for him, but she attaches herself to him anyways. They meet while she's walking her dog.

Benny, age twenty-five, spends Christmas watching 'It's a Wonderful Life' on TV.

Benny, age twenty-six, decides that he doesn't need to own New York anyway.

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**Two more to go...not to write, but to type up. Lets see how long homework takes. Reviews, please!**


	7. Maureen, Growing

Maureen Johnson, age two, is finger painting with her babysitter. Susan opens a pot of gold sparkles. Thrilled, Maureen dumps it over her head.

Maureen, age four, dons a red cape and runs around her kindergarten class singing 'Do-Re-Mi' from _The Sound of Music_. She tries to force the other children to join her, but she is disappointed when none of them know the song.

Maureen, age seven, plays the part of a bully's victim in her class play. When it comes time to perform in front of the entire school, Maureen strays from the script. She hates being the powerless character. She throws a hard punch and suddenly she's classified as a 'problem child'.

Maureen, age nine, starts taking drama classes at a real theatre school. After only one lesson, the teacher shakes her head and tells Maureen that _she _should be the one teaching the class.

Maureen, age twelve, belts out 'Nothing' from _A Chorus Line _at the school talent show. She gets in trouble for singing the word 'bullshit'.

Maureen, age thirteen, goes out with a boy for the first time.

Maureen, age fourteen, cheats on a boy for the first time.

Maureen, age sixteen, takes a vacation with her parents. She manages to chat up the pool boy into getting her a margarita, even though she's still too young.

Maureen, age eighteen, is voted Most Scandalous by her graduating class. She takes it as a compliment and hangs the certificate on her dorm room wall at NYU.

Maureen, age twenty-two, plays Musetta in a community center production of _La Boheme._ She loves the role as if she were born to play it.

Maureen, age twenty-three, moves in with her new boyfriend. Although he's sweet, honest, artistic and cute-in-a-dorky-way, Maureen can't help but compare him to her childhood dog.

Maureen, age twenty-four, is done with puppies and moves on to pussies.

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**The thing I like best about Maureen's life (in this portrayal) is that some of the events are modeled after my life: Age four, my musical theatre debut was running around in a cape, singing from The Sound of Music. Age seven (though I' never actually punched anyone) and age twelve are also based on me. **

**Seven down, one to go! Reviews get it up faster *hint hint*.**


	8. Roger, Growing

Roger Davies, age three, cries all the way to the doctor's office. The needle doesn't hurt that much and Roger gets a lollipop afterword for being a brave boy. He stops being afraid of needles after that.

Roger, age five, eats a bug because his brother dared him to and because he knows he's not a coward. But Roger can almost feel it, swimming in his stomach.

Roger, age eight, buys a Rock 'n Roll tape with his own money and listens to it again and again. He plays air guitar and sings along to the music, practicing.

Roger, age ten, takes lessons on his brother's guitar. His teacher tells him that he's too eccentric, that he's trying to move ahead too quickly for his skill level. _You can't become a rock star overnight,_ she reminds him. Roger, in revenge, hits a sour cord and vows that one day he'll write the world's best song on his guitar.

Roger, age twelve, pitches for his Jr. High School's baseball team. When an opponent mock's his technique, Roger gets suspended and sent to counseling for breaking the kid's arm with a bat ("It slipped!"). His councilor tells him to find another hobby to control his anger with. She suggests guitar lessons. He suggests a place where she can put her advice.

Roger, age fourteen, enters high school and learns, like it or not, that he's a ladies man.

Roger, age fifteen, is angry that the school band refuses to accept a guitar.

Roger, age sixteen, fails his English class for not turning in any of his assignment. Little does his teacher know his notebook is full of his song lyrics, as beautiful as any poem.

Roger, age eighteen, ignores college and joins a band. They separate soon afterward when Roger finds his band mates shooting up. Roger doesn't support drugs.

Roger, age nineteen, becomes a hypocrite.

Roger, age twenty, gets mugged, but ends up kicking the punk's ass. His attacker laughs and offers an apology and a proper introduction. He offers Roger an endless supply of Stoli in exchange for a place to crash. Roger admires the guy's good humour and accepts the booze with open arms.

Roger, age twenty-one, meets two people who would change his life forever. One would burden Roger with the constant threat of death – both hers and his own. The other would try his damndest to save Roger's life.

Roger, age twenty-three, with the death of his girlfriend, begins to dwell in the past.

Roger, age twenty-four, changes his philosophy and begins to live as if there's no day but today.

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**Yay! And we're done. Hope you enjoyed that. If you did, there's a pretty button you can press (Look down. See the Reviews button? That one.) Thanks for reading.**


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